Early Childhood Education: A Global Scenario

Transcription

1 Education International Early Childhood Education: A Global Scenario A study conducted by the Education International ECE Task Force June 2010

2 Education International Early Childhood Education: A Global Scenario A report on A study conducted by the Education International ECE Task Force June 2010

3 E A R L Y C H I L D H O O D E D U C A T I O N : A G L O B A L S C E N A R I O FOREWORD Children have a right, as expressed in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, to receive education, and early childhood education (ECE) must be considered part of this right. Education International strongly believes that early childhood education is of great value to all children and should be available to all. It provides a sound basis for learning and helps to develop skills, knowledge, personal competence and confidence and a sense of social responsibility. Therefore, every child should have access to early education of good quality. Education International s commitment to early childhood education is expressed in the 1998 Resolution passed by the EI World Congress in Washington D.C., which resolved to lobby for the provision of quality ECE to every child, free of charge and to improve the conditions of educators working in the sector. Furthermore, the 5th World Congress of Education International, held in Berlin in 2007, decided that the EI Executive Board should establish a Task Force on Early Childhood Education. The aim of the Task Force, which was established by the Board in 2008, is to advise EI on various aspects of early childhood education, including strategies for the effective implementation of the Washington Resolution, on ECE policy, practice, programmes and activities. This study is a product of an ECE mapping exercise conducted by the Task Force. Its findings reveal that there is a wide range of positive developments and experiences in several countries, including increasing participation rates, provision of comprehensive ECE services, as well as the training and professional development of teachers. However, progress remains slow and uneven, both within and between countries. We therefore encourage public authorities to invest in early childhood education and teacher unions and other civil society organizations to ensure that this neglected Education for All (EFA) goal is achieved by We would like to thank members of the Task Force for conducting this study and hope its findings will enable EI member organizations to share experiences and strengthen their ECE advocacy activities. Fred van Leeuwen General Secretary 3

4 EDUCATION INTERNATIONAL TABLE OF CONTENTS FOREWORD ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS INTRODUCTION Objectives of the study Limitations of the study WHAT IS EARLY CHILDHOOD EDUCATION AND WHY IS IT IMPORTANT? EDUCATION INTERNATIONAL S COMMITMENT TO EARLY CHILDHOOD EDUCATION MAIN ISSUES AND TRENDS EMERGING FROM THE STUDY Early childhood education policy and governance Provision and funding Acces Quality Trained and qualified ECE staff Working conditions and salaries of ECE staff SEVENTEEN CASE STUDIES OF EARLY CHILDHOOD EDUCATION Brazil Canada Denmark

6 EDUCATION INTERNATIONAL ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS First of all, I would like to thank my colleagues on the Task Force for contributing to the success of this study. In addition to their views, guidance and encouragement, members of the Task Force collected data for the study. The Task Force would also like to thank all the EI member organisations that participated in the study for their support. This study would not have been successful without the informative responses, relevant and valuable data they provided. The Task Force would also like to extend its appreciation to the EI Secretariat for providing the necessary administrative support and coordination, without which it would have been difficult to complete this study. Last but not least, we would like to thank the EI Executive Board for giving us the opportunity to carry out this important task and for the support they provided during the entire process and hope that this report and its findings will be of great value to EI and its member organisations across the globe. Haldis Holst Task Force Chairperson and EI Vice President 6 Task Force members Haldis Holst, Union of Education Norway, Chairperson/EI Vice President Irene Duncan-Adanusa, Ghana National Association of Teachers, Ghana/EI Vice President Allan Bauman, BUPL, Denmark Jenny Davies, NZEI Te Riu Roa (New Zealand Education Institute) New Zealand Attu Diaw, SNEEL-CNTS, Senegal Shyrelle Eubanks, National Education Association, USA Marguerite Gustave, St Lucia Teachers Union, St Lucia Joao Antonio Monlevade, CNTE, Brazil Omar Jan Ndure, Gambia Teachers Union, The Gambia Birendra Prakash Shrestha, Nepal Teachers Association, Nepal Stéphanie Valmaggia, UNSA-Education, France Marci Young, American Federation of Teachers, USA Dennis Sinyolo, EI Secretariat, Brussels (Secretary)

7 E A R L Y C H I L D H O O D E D U C A T I O N : A G L O B A L S C E N A R I O 1. INTRODUCTION Early childhood education (ECE) provision is becoming a growing priority, and has received increased policy attention, in many countries during the past years. Equitable access to quality early childhood education is increasingly viewed by policy makers as a way of strengthening the foundations of lifelong learning for all children and supporting the educational and social needs of families. While countries are increasingly determined to increase the provision of ECE, these policy developments are often motivated by economic and political goals (Urban 2009: 12). It should not be forgotten that early childhood education is, first and foremost, for children. While the contribution of ECE towards broader social, economic and education goals is being recognised (OECD 2009b: 9), the sector remains under-developed in a number of countries (gaps in provision and inadequate quality in services), due in part to a lack of investments, as well as the diversity of bodies and actors involved in its organisation and provision that may not be well coordinated and/or regulated. For example, the OECD Starting Strong II report states that: in many OECD countries, the level of regulation of services for children under 3 gives rise for concern: much of the child care sector is private and unregulated, with staff training and pedagogical programming being particularly weak (OECD 2006). Education International strongly believes that early childhood education is of great value to all children and should be equally available and accessible to all. Strengthening knowledge on the various approaches and practices on ECE adopted in different countries can contribute towards the improvement of policy on early childhood education through the identification of successes and challenges encountered in different contexts. This study was conducted by the Education International Early Childhood Education (ECE) Task Force and gathered and analysed cross-national data on early childhood education policies, systems, programmes and activities from 17 countries, namely: Brazil, Canada, Denmark, The Gambia, Ghana, Hungary, Mexico, Nepal, New Zealand, Nigeria, Norway, Portugal, St. Lucia, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Togo, the United States and Venezuela. These case studies are largely based on data collected by the ECE Task Force from government and other sources, and complemented by previously 7

8 EDUCATION INTERNATIONAL published reports, studies, and online resources, including EI policy documents on ECE and the report, Early Childhood Education in Europe: Achievements, Challenges and Responsibilities, commissioned by EI and undertaken by Dr Mathias Urban. The OECD report, Starting Strong II, published in 2006, provided more comprehensive information on a number of OECD countries included in this report, as well as a synopsis of the main discussions on policies and practices in early childhood education relevant to each country. Additionally, the UNESCO Education for All Global Monitoring Report Strong Foundations, published in 2007, and the European Database of the European Information Network on Education, Eurydice, provided detailed information and statistics for some of the countries. 1.1 Objectives of the study The overall goal of the study was to investigate early childhood education policies, programmes and activities across the globe, with a view to making this information available to EI member organisations to facilitate evidence-based policy-making and information exchange. The specific objectives of the study were: To identify key ECE policy issues in each of the participating countries, with a view to indentifying common regional and international trends and developments, as well as the diversity and uniqueness of the various systems; To identify the main providers and funders of ECE services in the target countries; To map out the level of access to ECE services and union views on the quality of these services; To map out the structure of the ECE workforce in the participating countries, their professional development and conditions of service; and, 8 To collect examples of good practice and case studies to facilitate information exchange among EI member organisations and other stakeholders.

9 E A R L Y C H I L D H O O D E D U C A T I O N : A G L O B A L S C E N A R I O 1.2 Limitations of the study The conduct of this study was not without constraints. The main challenge was the limited amount of information available on ECE and sources of data, particularly at the global level. There is a general shortage of information and data on ECE and many studies tend to rely on the OECD s dual publication Starting Strong I & II, whose data is mainly limited to OECD countries. While this study will add to the pool of the few available resources in the field of early education, further research into various aspects of early childhood education needs to be undertaken. The time factor also posed a challenge to members of the Task Force, who collected the data and the EI Secretariat, who analysed it and came up with the report. Most of the members of the Task Force are full time union staff members, public employees or union leaders. 9

10 EDUCATION INTERNATIONAL 2. WHAT IS EARLY CHILDHOOD EDUCATION AND WHY IS IT IMPORTANT? ECE contributes to cognitive and other domains of child development. Given the multifaceted nature of early childhood, it often goes by a number of names and definitions, in different countries, as well as between different stakeholders. For example, UNESCO refers to early education as early childhood care and education (ECCE), the OECD calls it early childhood education and care (ECEC), the World Bank calls it early child development (ECD), while UNICEF calls it early childhood development (ECD). 10 Education International refers to services for young children as early childhood education (ECE). This includes all kinds of education taking place before

11 E A R L Y C H I L D H O O D E D U C A T I O N : A G L O B A L S C E N A R I O compulsory schooling and provided in different kinds of settings nurseries, crèches, childcare centres, kindergartens, pre-schools and other similar institutions (1998 Congress Resolution on Early Childhood Education). Throughout this report, early education services will be referred to as early childhood education. This is education from a broader point of view - wholesome education that encompasses children s holistic development and learning, where care forms an integral part of a child s development and education. Similarly, different countries use different names to describe ECE teaching staff. The names most commonly used in the countries covered in this study include teachers, educators, pedagogues and carers /care givers. In this study, the terms teacher or teaching staff are mostly used to describe the teaching workforce. It is also important to note that, in addition to the teaching staff, some countries have teaching assistants, cooks, nurses, psychologists and other specialists and support staff working in early education. Early childhood education has enormous individual, social and economic benefits. For example, early childhood programmes complement the roles of parents and other carers in raising children during the early years. The early childhood years set the foundation for life, ensuring that children have positive experiences and that their needs for health, stimulation and support are met, and that they learn to interact with their surroundings. Furthermore, early childhood education programmes result in easier transition to primary school, better completion rates, reduced poverty and social equality (UNESCO 2007). Children from poor families, immigrant children and children from other vulnerable groups may particularly benefit from ECE s equalising factor before compulsory schooling. For example, access to ECE can help immigrant children develop and learn the local language. The OECD (2006) further argues that early childhood education enables women to participate in the labour market, thereby contributing to economic growth. The OECD (2006:12) posits: Because economic prosperity depends on maintaining a high employment population ratio, the wish to bring more women into the labour market has been a key driver of government interest in expanding ECEC services. 11

12 EDUCATION INTERNATIONAL Governments interest in the economic benefits of ECE is reflected in the European targets for early education, known as the Barcelona Targets. These targets, which were agreed at the Barcelona summit in 2002, simply set targets for childcare places for children aged 0-3 and 3 to mandatory school age, to be achieved by While such ECE policies, which focus on employment and gender equality, are essential, they are, unfortunately, inadequate. There is need to go beyond the provision of childcare places to comprehensive services for children, that take the needs and the rights of children into account. This approach is supported by (UNESCO 2007), which argues that early childhood programmes should have as their core objective the wellbeing and holistic development of children s capacities. 12

13 E A R L Y C H I L D H O O D E D U C A T I O N : A G L O B A L S C E N A R I O 3. EDUCATION INTERNATIONAL S COMMITMENT TO EARLY CHILDHOOD EDUCATION The fundamental right of each child to learn and develop to his or her full potential, through equal access to quality education, regardless of their age, gender, origin, ethnicity and or social background, provides the foundation for Education International s (EI) commitment to early childhood education. It is rooted in the idea that: early childhood is the most critical period for cognitive and social development, the acquisition of languages and early literacy. Children are active learners from birth, and the first years are vital.. Early childhood education (ECE) should be recognized as a first step of basic education, as a fully integrated sector within national education systems. Provision should be universally accessible and free for all children [ ] High quality ECE provides the foundation for life-long learning and stimulates children s social, emotional, physical, cognitive and linguistic development (Education International 2006). In 1998, the 2nd EI World Congress in Washington D.C. passed a resolution on early childhood education. The Congress delegates from around the world agreed that children have a right, as expressed in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, to receive education, and early childhood education must be considered part of this right. Article 26 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights clearly states that everyone has the right to education, while Article 28 of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child requires states to recognize the right of the child to education on the basis of equal opportunity. Year 2008 marked the 60th Anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. The fundamental and inalienable human rights (including education), enshrined in this document remain as relevant today as they were in That is the reason why EI insists that early childhood education is a basic human right. In addition, it should be noted that ECE is the first Education for All (EFA) goal. Unfortunately, this study confirms the findings of the 2008 Education 13

14 EDUCATION INTERNATIONAL for All Global Monitoring Report that ECE remains a largely neglected EFA goal. Therefore, it will not be possible to achieve the EFA goals by 2015 without achieving the ECE goal. The Washington Congress delegates also agreed that quality ECE services should be a public service and an integral part of a country s education system, be provided free of charge and be available to all children, including those with special needs. The Congress also resolved that the same status of pedagogical training should be provided for all teachers, including early childhood teachers, so as to promote continuity in the educational system, that appropriate measures should be taken to ensure that both men and women are recruited and trained as early childhood teachers and that teachers in early childhood education should have the same rights, status and entitlements as teachers in other sectors. In Europe, Education International has developed a policy on early childhood education. In this policy, which was ratified by the EI/ETUCE Pan European Conference in 2006, the region and its member organizations commit themselves to: 14 be active participants in, and initiators of, the debate on high quality ECE as an inherent part of basic education and thus every child s right advocate for ECE to be a priority on the policy agendas of local authorities, governments and intergovernmental bodies. promote ECE that is publicly funded and universally accessible, although not compulsory monitor the rise of private sector initiatives in ECE in Europe and counteract the emergence of ECE as a commodity. advocate the integration of ECE into education systems under the auspices of the Ministries of Education or their equivalents counteract the split between education and care that results in inequality, instability for children, and low quality provision seek high standards of teacher education in ECE, at the same academic level as teacher education for primary school and onwards. work to achieve pay and working conditions for early childhood teachers, which are on a par with the best available of the other sectors of the education system seek improved opportunities for continuous professional development seek better career opportunities for early childhood teachers, particularly within the realm of educational research

15 E A R L Y C H I L D H O O D E D U C A T I O N : A G L O B A L S C E N A R I O seek to attract more men to early childhood teacher education, and more qualified male teachers to ECE advocate higher resources nationally and cross-nationally for educational research with direct relevance for ECE urge governments to support ECE research on a national level, and encourage research and cross-national data collection on an international level, for the purpose of continued quality improvement. undertake further research on ECE in order to have a strong knowledgebased position on its quality, on the status of the teachers delivering ECE, and on the programmes being established. facilitate collaboration with other specialists encourage the strengthening of co-operation and communication with parents pay special attention to ECE developments for children under three, and ensure that they are always included in all the above recommendations The 5th World Congress of Education International held in Berlin in 2007 decided that the EI Executive Board should establish a Task Force on Early Childhood Education. The aim of the Task Force, which was established in 2008, is to advise EI on various aspects of early childhood education, including strategies for the effective implementation of the Washington Resolution on ECE, on ECE policy, practice, programmes and activities. Furthermore, the Task Force is mandated to create an opportunity for EI member organisations to learn from one another and from other stakeholders participating in the field of early education. Since its formation, the Task Force has supported or facilitated the organisation of two ECE seminars, a Pan-European seminar held in Malta in November 2008 and a Pan-African meeting held in Accra in September One of the key recommendations from the Accra seminar was to develop a Pan-African ECE policy. A working group to spearhead this important initiative was set up by the region. This particular study is also part of the work of the Task Force. In view of the foregoing, Education International believes that early childhood education is a public good and that every child should have access to ECE services of good quality, free of charge. In that respect, EI s member organisations are committed to engage with governments, UN agencies, civil society organisations and other stakeholders to promote quality early childhood education for all. 15

16 EDUCATION INTERNATIONAL 4. MAIN ISSUES AND TRENDS EMERGING FROM THE STUDY Early childhood education systems differ greatly, not only across continents, but also within and between neighbouring countries, largely due to their socio-cultural and socio-economic and political contexts. Generally, despite these national and regional differences, unions within countries share similar concerns about how ECE programmes and services should be organised, implemented, maintained and monitored. Issues such as universal access for children and families, adequate training and qualifications of ECE staff, fair and equal working conditions and salaries for teaching staff, well-structured ECE governance, quality of ECE services, and including care as an integral part of ECE, are common themes resonating across the ECE sector. In some countries they have been met with success and in others, remain key challenges. In this section, examples from different countries are provided under each issue to highlight different practices, successes and challenges. The main findings of the study may be briefly summarised as follows: 16 Many early childhood education systems are characterised by multiple providers and funders, some of which are government, private, community, faith-based and non-governmental organisations. The ECE sector remains predominantly privatised, particularly for the 0-3 year age group. Access to ECE services remains low in many developing countries, particularly for the 0-3 year age group, poor and rural children, children with special needs and other vulnerable groups. There is a shortage of professionally trained and qualified ECE teaching staff in many countries. Men are seriously underrepresented in ECE, with over 90 percent of the teaching staff being women. The conditions of service for ECE teaching staff tend to be inferior to those of their counterparts in other education sectors. This might also be linked to the generally lower levels of qualifications in the ECE sector. The quality of ECE services is perceived to be higher in urban areas and much lower in rural areas, partly because of the uneven allocation or availability of resources, including qualified teaching staff. The ECE workforce remains generally non-unionised in many countries.

17 E A R L Y C H I L D H O O D E D U C A T I O N : A G L O B A L S C E N A R I O 4.1 Early childhood education policy and governance The OECD (2006) identifies key approaches to effective ECE provision. For example, the Starting Strong II study calls for a systemic and integrated approach to ECE policy, characterized by well-coordinated policy frameworks at the central and decentralized levels. The report advises governments to appoint a lead ministry and to adopt a collaborative and partnership approach. Such an approach would provide links across services (e.g. health, nutrition, special education etc), professionals and parents. This study s findings indicate that policies on early childhood education and the governance of ECE vary greatly between countries, and depend largely on the approach towards ECE in a particular country (if education, care and development are seen as interlinked with one another, or are considered as separate entities). For example, there is a stark division between countries that treat education and care separately, such as in Canada where child-care regulation and policies for children under 5 years fall under one domain, and public kindergarten policy and administration for children 5 years and older under another, and countries where a child-centred holistic approach to ECE combines care, development and learning under one domain, such as in the case of Denmark (where ECE forms an integral part of the social welfare system) and Norway (where ECE is part of the education system). In countries where ECE falls under one domain, it is often also the responsibility of a single government ministry, department or agency, for example in Denmark the Ministry of Social Affairs holds the overall responsibility for ECE and provision is decentralised to the municipalities, and New Zealand where ECE comes under the auspices of the Ministry of Education. In Norway, the responsibility for ECE has been held by the Ministry of Education and Research since The ministry organises ECE from birth to compulsory school age, out of school services and the professional training of educators (Urban 2009: 33). ECE thus forms an integral part of the national education system. At the local level, municipalities have unified school and ECE services in one department, which has resulted in closer coordination between ECE and primary education. In 2003, the Norwegian Parliament reached a broad agreement about the main objectives of the country s ECE policy. These are access for all children, equal financing for private and 17

18 EDUCATION INTERNATIONAL public ECE, and a limit for parental fees, quality and diversity. The legislative objective guaranteeing the child s individual right to attend ECE came into force in The Kindergarten Act and Framework Plan were revised in 2006 and the Act has more in focus child participation, while the Framework Plan links ECE stronger to education. In many countries, ECE services for 0-3 year olds fall under the responsibility of one ministry, and ECE services for 3-6 year olds under another ministry (e.g. Hungary, Portugal). ECE provision for children aged three up to compulsory school age is often much more developed than ECE services for under 3 year olds, and the former often forms part of the education system, whereas ECE for 0-3 year olds generally does not. In Hungary, the much larger kindergarten education system for 3-7 year olds is considered the first stage of public education (OECD 2006: 343) and is governed by the Education Act. In Venezuela, early childhood education forms part of the education system, and attendance is obligatory from the age of three. In Portugal, ECE forms an integral part of the national education system governed by the 1997 Framework Law. Overall responsibility is shared between the Ministry of Education (responsible for pre-primary education for 3-6 year olds) and the Ministry of Social Security and Labour (responsible for ECE services for 0-3 year olds). ECE has been gradually decentralised over the past years, where increasingly policy and organisational matters fall under the auspices of municipalities, particularly the training and conditions of non-teaching staff. 18 In countries where ECE does not fall under one domain, the governance of the sector is often shared between a number of ministries and government agencies. As highlighted in the OECD Starting Strong report of 2001, administrative responsibilities for ECE tend to be fragmented in many countries (Urban 2009: 31), and services tend to be more fragmented in childcare than pre-school education. For example, in Canada, different levels of government hold responsibility for ECE services, and responsibility is divided between the provincial/territorial governments. Similarly, in Brazil and Venezuela, the responsibility for ECE provision and services is highly decentralised between and within the regions, with rural areas often very under-serviced, despite national efforts to improve access in disadvantaged regions.

19 E A R L Y C H I L D H O O D E D U C A T I O N : A G L O B A L S C E N A R I O In Mexico, various levels and bodies hold responsibility for ECE in a highly decentralised system without a common framework and coordinated policy at the central level. There exists no ECE policy at the federal level in Mexico, and ECE is largely a private matter with minimal state involvement. In the United States, early childhood education policy is traditionally characterised by limited government intervention in family matters, and as such, there exists no national coordinated policy framework or a federal state department responsible for children s services. As a result, policy and provision of ECE services is largely a responsibility of each State, which also accounts for great variations in policies between them. In The Gambia, ECE is not part of the basic education system, and multiple ministries are involved in its governance. Supervision and monitoring of ECE services are minimal. 4.2 Provision and funding Private provision tends to be very high in countries where there is no central body responsible for ECE services and where public funding is very low. More often provision for 0-3 year olds is private compared to services for 3-6 year olds. This is particularly the case in developing countries, such as the Gambia, Ghana, Nepal, Nigeria, St. Lucia, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, but also in developed countries such as Canada and the United States. In the United States, around 90 percent of ECE provision for 0-3 year olds is private, and mainly provided in private centres and family day care homes. In Nepal, 70 percent of ECE provision is private (private centres usually combine nurseries and kindergartens, that include the 0-3 agegroup, while school-based ECE centres generally only have kindergartens for 4-5 year olds), and in Ghana, 75 percent of services for the 0-3 year age group (nurseries and crèches) are provided by the private sector. By contrast, in Denmark only 1 percent of all ECE services are private, and around 97 percent of services are provided by the public sector. The remaining 2 percent are services run by parents or an association. Moreover, in developing countries in particular, international agencies, NGOs, faith-based organisations, local communities and private institutions are often involved in the organisation, provision and funding of early childhood education services (such as in The Gambia, Ghana, Nepal, Nigeria, 19

20 EDUCATION INTERNATIONAL St. Lucia, and Togo). In the Gambia, early childhood education is largely provided by private institutions who act as service providers rather than on the holistic development of the child, although NGOs, faith-based organisations, local communities and the government in part, may also assume responsibility for ECE provision. In Nepal, funding is borne, for a large part, by local communities, international agencies and NGOs, and in the private sector parental fees, as government funding is very low. In The Gambia, public funding from the central government and local authorities is complemented by funding from NGOs such as Action Aid International and international agencies such as UNICEF. In St. Lucia and St. Vincent and the Grenadines, funding similarly comes from a variety of sources, including parental fees, government subvention, NGOS, the European Union, UNICEF and the Bernard van Leer Foundation. In private ECE services, the costs are often borne entirely by parents. For example, in Nigeria and Ghana parents additionally pay for teaching and learning materials, whereas in Ghana these are increasingly provided in the private sector by the government. In countries where government ministries and agencies play a central role in the organisation of ECE, they also contribute considerably to ECE funding, such as in Denmark and Norway, where municipalities are responsible for the implementation and provision of early childhood education, and receive block grants or funding from central government. In Norway there has been a considerable increase in ECE funding over the past decade to match the increased demand for ECE services, yet the system does still rely on parental contributions, set at a maximum of 20 percent of costs. Also in Denmark parental fees are relatively high at percent. 20 In Hungary and Portugal, funding for ECE is largely public and costs are largely borne by the local authorities and the state combined. In Hungary, around 90 percent of total government ECE expenditure is directed at maintaining public provision of ECE and the remaining funding is directed towards a small non-profit sector run by voluntary agencies and churches (OECD 2006: 347). Yet, there has been little increase in the level of funding allocated by the state per child, and local authorities do not preside over the funds to complement this per capita allocation. This has resulted in larger groups of children and merged classes.

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